Blooming Sensor Update

[Tony Rivera]

Is it possible to get a serial number range of the units that might be prone to this issue?

Refer to Kristian's post earlier in this thread for a little more clarification.

Is it possible to get a serial number range of the units that might be prone to this issue?

Refer to Kristian's post earlier in this thread for a little more clarification.

So Kristian said that any cameras sent out from a few days before his initial post on Sept 5, onwards will have the new calibration. So this should put your mind at rest. However if it is that the reseller has been holding stock for a couple of weeks then you may be unlucky. So it really would be helpful if there is any information on the serial number range of the new calibration. (Supposing your serial numbers are chronological?)

Here's another update guys.

As Kristian mentioned, not all cameras will have to come back.

On that note, so far I have less than a dozen people (in the US region) that have signed up to have the calibration. So what we're suspecting is that only some of the earliest cameras show this.

At this point we've gotten a few cameras back that have definitely been improved by the re-calibration. As Kristian said is now the baseline for cameras coming out of the factory.

I know the shipping thing has been a bit of a sticking point for some. So, for those that send their camera in I intended to drop an extra battery in there for you, as a way of saying thanks for sending it in. If that's not what you're looking for please let the support agent know when you arrange the RMA and we can try to work something out.

I'm out for the weekend guys. I'll try to keep up a bit over the weekend, but my answers will be slower. Have a good weekend!

I just got my re calibrated camera back from BMD US but there was no extra battery in the package.
contacted BMD US via email to ask for it.
Lets see what they'll do.

Eli.

Here's another update guys.

As Kristian mentioned, not all cameras will have to come back.

On that note, so far I have less than a dozen people (in the US region) that have signed up to have the calibration. So what we're suspecting is that only some of the earliest cameras show this.

At this point we've gotten a few cameras back that have definitely been improved by the re-calibration. As Kristian said is now the baseline for cameras coming out of the factory.

I know the shipping thing has been a bit of a sticking point for some. So, for those that send their camera in I intended to drop an extra battery in there for you, as a way of saying thanks for sending it in. If that's not what you're looking for please let the support agent know when you arrange the RMA and we can try to work something out.

I'm out for the weekend guys. I'll try to keep up a bit over the weekend, but my answers will be slower. Have a good weekend!

I just got my re calibrated camera back from BMD US but there was no extra battery in the package.
contacted BMD US via email to ask for it.
Lets see what they'll do.

Eli.

You probably know this, but just in case not, if they covered shipping both ways, you don't get a battery.

[Tony Rivera]

I just got my re calibrated camera back from BMD US but there was no extra battery in the package.
contacted BMD US via email to ask for it.
Lets see what they'll do.

Eli.

You should be getting some info back on this today.

I just received my BMPCC. Did a black spot test - failed. Updated firmware - fixed. No orbs that I could see or cause either.

Just called up BMD for my RMA. Hopefully I'll get an e mail from them shortly. Who knows may even take care of the fixed pattern noise on high ISOs.-- has anyone tested that post calibration?

Here's another update guys.

As Kristian mentioned, not all cameras will have to come back.

On that note, so far I have less than a dozen people (in the US region) that have signed up to have the calibration. So what we're suspecting is that only some of the earliest cameras show this.

At this point we've gotten a few cameras back that have definitely been improved by the re-calibration. As Kristian said is now the baseline for cameras coming out of the factory.

I know the shipping thing has been a bit of a sticking point for some. So, for those that send their camera in I intended to drop an extra battery in there for you, as a way of saying thanks for sending it in. If that's not what you're looking for please let the support agent know when you arrange the RMA and we can try to work something out.

I'm out for the weekend guys. I'll try to keep up a bit over the weekend, but my answers will be slower. Have a good weekend!

I just got my re calibrated camera back from BMD US but there was no extra battery in the package.
contacted BMD US via email to ask for it.
Lets see what they'll do.

Eli.

You probably know this, but just in case not, if they covered shipping both ways, you don't get a battery.

I am aware, thanks,
I did pay for my shipping to them. Otherwise I wouldn't have brought it up.
Thanks for the heads up though,

Got a response from RMA department.
They are sending me the extra battery.
Thank you BMD.

So I have this issue as well with my Pocket Camera too-- clipping highlights (white orbs).
I called BMD US support and the guy wanted proof of the hard clipping to determine if it would benefit from a recalibration. I'm thinking to myself, it either benifits from recalibration or you ship me a new one that doesn't exibite this uncharicteristic behavior.
Upon requesting an RMA he wanted me to send a PNG still of the footage to which I asked if he wanted just a frame grab of the ProRes. He said to convert a CinemaDNG frame and didn't seem to know that the Pocket Camera didn't shoot raw until he went and grabbed a camera to check.
So I sent him a link to the footage.

How long should this whole recalibration process take?

I understand every geography is a little different. Here in Asia, the re-calibration process is very fast. You first need to contact the vendor you purchased from, and then return it to them. They send it in and then return it to you when completed. I dropped mine off on friday evening and had it back Tuesday - lightning quick, and it makes a world of difference!! their customer service and drive to get cameras back to their customers is top notch - way better (and faster) than the big Japanese camera companies for similar recall situations.

I understand every geography is a little different. Here in Asia, the re-calibration process is very fast. You first need to contact the vendor you purchased from, and then return it to them. They send it in and then return it to you when completed. I dropped mine off on friday evening and had it back Tuesday - lightning quick, and it makes a world of difference!! their customer service and drive to get cameras back to their customers is top notch - way better (and faster) than the big Japanese camera companies for similar recall situations.

How can that be?? I'm in China and buy my pocket camera form BMD china agency. They sent my camera back to Bmd singapore for 2 weeks! still not come back...

have you confirmed that BMD received the camera? how did they ship it?

have you confirmed that BMD received the camera? how did they ship it?

The agency said that BMD is working on it.. I keep asking but they still said that they just know BMD is working on it and they don't know the progress at all... They aslo said that geting the camera back in this week is impossible~!

One thing make me really angry is: The agency recieve 30 new cameras without orb problem and they sale it to the new customers instead of giving to the old customers like me !!!

I'm still waiting for my camera back......
Really hope I can get my camera back soon...

have you confirmed that BMD received the camera? how did they ship it?

The agency said that BMD is working on it.. I keep asking but they still said that they just know BMD is working on it and they don't know the progress at all... They aslo said that geting the camera back in this week is impossible~!

One thing make me really angry is: The agency recieve 30 new cameras without orb problem and they sale it to the new customers instead of giving to the old customers like me !!!

I'm still waiting for my camera back......
Really hope I can get my camera back soon...

The process does not seem to be that quick or simple.

I'm UK based and my camera has been with Blackmagic Design EMEA (based in the UK) for a week now.

My camera arrived 27 August. Shipped it to BM 13 September. They confirmed receiving the camera 18 September and this morning they said "your camera and it is currently undergoing recalibration and testing".

So I've had no use of the camera for a month.

Sit tight... they are working on the problem.

it took me about 2 weeks only beacause I insisted in shipping it in even when they were not ready to start.

it took me about 2 weeks only beacause I insisted in shipping it in even when they were not ready to start.

Just a shout out to all the folks at the BMD US office, thanks for making the recalibration quick and easy. I dropped it off on Wednesday last week, a little nervous since I wanted to use it for a Sunday shoot.
I had it back Friday afternoon shot with it on Sunday and had no issues. Really professional bunch to deal with, thanks for getting this resolved in a timely fashion.

Are Pocket cameras shipping at all at the moment?

Still no sign of any at CVP, the largest dealer in UK.

[Tony Rivera]

Cameras are shipping on a daily basis to our distributors.

Good news Tony.

By total coincidence CVP just told me mine is in stock as of today. Will look forward to shooting with it.

Good news Tony.

By total coincidence CVP just told me mine is in stock as of today. Will look forward to shooting with it.

Good news when did you order with them?

I placed an order for 2 on May 14th and I am around 260th in the queue.

Like our US counterparts it seems we in the UK need to turn to the smaller re sellers if we want to see our cams before 2014.

I cancelled with CVP this morning, the biggest UK re seller. They are the same as B&H in the states, everyone went to them first being the biggest assuming that they would have the most stock.

It seems though BMD's distribution system is different to most. For example.

1. CVP -Biggest Reseller in UK pre orders 2000 BMPCC's off BMD and 1500 people pre order from their website.

2. Jigsaw24 - Medium sized re seller in UK pre orders 200 BMPCC's off BMD and 60 people pre order from them.

3. Acme Cameras in UK order 10 BMPCC's and 1 person places a pre order with them.

BMD sail over 60 BMPCC's in their first shipment to the UK and it decides to equally distribute the 60 cameras across the 3 re sellers, regardless of their pre order quantity, meaning 20 BMPCC's go to each re seller.

This is how this now affects each re seller

1. CVP -biggest Re seller in the UK can in no way meet its pre order demand with just 20 cams coming in a week and people who ordered on day one are left stranded for potential a few months.

2. Jigsaw24 -The Medium sized re seller also cannot meet pre order demands...but backlog should be cleared within a couple of months.

3. Acme Cameras, the smallest camera shop in the UK meets all of its pre order demands on day one, then has 9 cameras spare to sell to customers in the shop as well as stick the other 10 on Ebay for extortionate prices!

....Thats how I see it anyway!!...

The only correction I would suggest is that according to CVP they are currently getting 5 cameras per week, not 20.

I ordered during the NAB show, think it was 6th or 8th April, so about as early as it's possible to order. It's unlikely for quantities not to ramp up though - I fully expect BMD will be shipping more than 5 a week to CVP come October! I'd try staying the course even if you are 260th in the queue.

The production (and hence shipments) will ramp up. Same time more and more customers will cancel their preorders (either because they finally turned their backs, or because they had multiple preorders with different stores). Finally smaller vendors' orders will be fullfilled, leaving more cameras for the larger vendors. All three effects will significantly accelerate the other customers' progression through the waiting lists... I wouldn't lose hope.

How is any of this about the blooming sensor?

So Kristian said that any cameras sent out from a few days before his initial post on Sept 5, onwards will have the new calibration.

It appears that mine blooms, which shipped this week.

The process does not seem to be that quick or simple.

I'm UK based and my camera has been with Blackmagic Design EMEA (based in the UK) for a week now.

My camera arrived 27 August. Shipped it to BM 13 September. They confirmed receiving the camera 18 September and this morning they said "your camera and it is currently undergoing recalibration and testing".

So I've had no use of the camera for a month.

Sit tight... they are working on the problem.

Adam, keep us updated, BMD actually got mine on the 18th too, be interesting to see the difference in fixing/shipping back time between our two cameras.

Edit: forgot to say I'm in the UK too.

After just more than three weeks, I've received my BMPCC back today. I'm happy to report that the blooming sensor issue has been fixed. Since I live in South Africa, I assume the re-calibration was done in the UK. I simply sent it back to my reseller to get fixed, so I'm not too sure. Thanks to Juanne at Orms for great service and BM for solving the problem.

I'm in Los Angeles, and sent my pocket cam up to BM in Fremont, CA on Tuesday of this week; BM received it the next day- yesterday- according to the tracking (though I haven't heard anything from BM yet confirming its arrival).
We'll see how long it takes.

When I first wrote asking for the RMA, I was told I'd have to wait a bit until they were ready for me, which took a few days, then they sent me the RMA. I'm hoping that that initial waiting period means the camera is being looked at as we speak, and not just sitting on a shelf somewhere waiting.

If you have sensor blooming and use a lens with onion bokeh, the results are this:

https://www.google.com/search?q=bloomin ... igLo2IH4Dw

I don't know how helpful this is but my bmpcc has no blooming at all. Received on Tuesday.

My camera still haven't come back~ Almost 4 week~~ what the XXXX
Agency said that it may be back on 8th Oct..
Really want my camera back!!!!!!!!!!!!

After just more than three weeks, I've received my BMPCC back today. I'm happy to report that the blooming sensor issue has been fixed. Since I live in South Africa, I assume the re-calibration was done in the UK. I simply sent it back to my reseller to get fixed, so I'm not too sure. Thanks to Juanne at Orms for great service and BM for solving the problem.

Good for Juanne! I passed on the 1st batch to wait on Oct/Nov delivery knowing this might be case. Good to see SA filmmakers getting their BMPPC delivery before B&H'ers.

Mine was shipped back to me late last week. Not had a chance to test it but will do this weekend.

My Pocket arrived in San Francisco on Tuesday for the calibration fix.

I just received a shipping notice (Friday) that it was on its way back to me. Pretty darned good turnaround... I'll be glad to have it back - my 17mm Voigtländer arrived the day before I shipped it out!

Sounds like the U.S. office is up and running efficiently on the calibration. Thanks, guys!

My Pocket arrived in San Francisco on Tuesday for the calibration fix.

I just received a shipping notice (Friday) that it was on its way back to me. Pretty darned good turnaround... I'll be glad to have it back - my 17mm Voigtländer arrived the day before I shipped it out!

Sounds like the U.S. office is up and running efficiently on the calibration. Thanks, guys!

Not sure; I put my name in to the U.S. facility two weeks ago, no word yet on sending it in...

Sent mine in last Thursday from the east coast (USA)(be careful not to trash the battery with the popcorn packing material If you requested the battery option.) got it back yesterday.

Sent mine in last Thursday from the east coast (USA)(be careful not to trash the battery with the popcorn packing material If you requested the battery option.) got it back yesterday.

The relevant issue to this discussion is the delay from putting in your reservation, to getting the invitation to send it in (i.e., notification that they're ready to receive it)...

I waited about a month until they sent me an RMA. I guess they were figuring out what to do? I can't complain.

[Tony Rivera]

As you can see from peoples responses, the cameras are coming in and being shipped out as quickly as possible. While we make sure we're thorough as possible with making sure the recalibration is done exactly right, that may take a bit longer depending on the workflow of each individual location handling this procedure.

Not sure; I put my name in to the U.S. facility two weeks ago, no word yet on sending it in...

That is strange; I emailed BM on Sept 19 asking for the RMA, got it on Sept. 27.
Though, it seemed like they were just getting ready to start up the process when I wrote, so maybe just good timing on my part.

Not sure; I put my name in to the U.S. facility two weeks ago, no word yet on sending it in...

That is strange; I emailed BM on Sept 19 asking for the RMA, got it on Sept. 27.
Though, it seemed like they were just getting ready to start up the process when I wrote, so maybe just good timing on my part.

That's what I feared; they should be, with fairness, going in order, but I put mine in before that and still no word.

My Pocket arrived in San Francisco on Tuesday for the calibration fix.

I just received a shipping notice (Friday) that it was on its way back to me. Pretty darned good turnaround... I'll be glad to have it back - my 17mm Voigtländer arrived the day before I shipped it out!

Sounds like the U.S. office is up and running efficiently on the calibration. Thanks, guys!

For the record, I called in with my request for an RMA on the day after the program was announced, on (I believe) September 5. They let me know it would be a while before the San Francisco office was up and running, and told me to hold off on sending the camera in.

I received the RMA # and request to send in the camera on September 24. I sent it in on September 28, it arrived in SF on October 1st, and it ships out today, Oct. 4. I have no complaints at all about the turnaround, and I appreciate the service.

Need a second opinion. Please let me know if mine needs to be recalibrated

Need a second opinion. Please let me know if mine needs to be recalibrated

That blooming looks perfectly normal. All the highlights have soft roll offs. They don't have any hard edges that are evident in the sensor clipping issue. If it was suffering from the clipping issue it would cause the headlights of the bus on the left to eat into the lap posts in the foreground as it passes them.

Thanks Adam.

Rather be safe than sorry. My first BM product so I'm still rough around the edges with their equipment.

Would you classify these shimmering stars as blooms?
https://www.dropbox.com/s/r7cpxj6unt2wh ... r%2012.MOV

My camera arrived back from San Francisco yesterday. Things are busy, but I had time for a quick test with a candle and the Voigtländer 17.5mm.

I've only seen it on the camera’s LCD so far, but it looked good to me. No sign of blooming at all. Mission accomplished! (And they threw in the free battery, too!)

Thanks again to everyone at BMD San Francisco.